71: Chapter 71 Where is that bastard?!
"Zzzzzzt—!!"
The countless threads of Origin Qi that had originally targeted Lin Fan were now frantically wrapping around the mirror image.
"Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!"
A dense sound of cutting rang out.
The mirror image, possessing the strength of a One-Viscera Yuan Zong, was torn into fragments by the formation ripples before it could even let out a scream, dissipating into specks of light.
"First stage, cleared."
Lin Fan clapped his hands, looking relaxed, "This isn't a test; it's clearly an IQ detector."
The rhythm of the subsequent stages became faster and faster.
The second stage had two mirror images at the Two-Viscera Origin Sect Realm.
The third stage had three mirror images at the Three-Viscera Origin Sect Realm.
The strength of these mirror images kept climbing; they even started learning how to coordinate, and their combat sabers began to be enveloped in blade intent.
That was Lin Fan's "Killing Blade Intent"!
"A bit interesting, it can even replicate blade intent?"
The fighting spirit in Lin Fan's eyes gradually rose. He no longer relied solely on the formation to trap and kill, but instead drew his dragon slaying saber to face the enemy head-on.
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
Inside the grand hall, the blade light was like a weave, and sparks flew everywhere.
Lin Fan viewed this as a rare opportunity for tempering. He deliberately suppressed his own power, maneuvering around the mirror images, observing the angles of their strikes and their techniques for exerting force, using them in turn to verify his own blade path.
"Your blade intent is too scattered; it has form but no spirit."
"This strike has a tricky angle, but lacks follow-through."
Lin Fan commented while swinging his saber. The blade intent within him became increasingly refined through the constant collisions, and his understanding of the killing formation was also rapidly improving.
In just half an hour.
Lin Fan was unstoppable, fighting his way to the sixty-ninth stage!
Meanwhile, outside the grand hall.
The mist rolled, and a disheveled figure finally broke through the last layer of the illusion formation and stepped onto the final stair.
It was none other than the Ninth Prince of the Heavenly Snake Clan.
At this moment, he no longer had his previous composure. His luxurious golden robe had been blown to tatters by the formation, his hair was disheveled, and several bloodstains hung on his body—the price paid for forcibly breaking through the formation.
"Hoo... hoo..."
The Ninth Prince breathed heavily, his golden vertical pupils sinister, "Damned human formation master... to actually set up such a tricky trap!"
He had originally thought that by relying on his talent and bloodline senses, he could easily crush Lin Fan.
As it turned out, the damned stair formation was unpredictable; if not for the many life-saving trump cards he carried, he would have likely fallen into the abyss long ago.
"However, that human must have died even more miserably."
The Ninth Prince straightened his back and sneered, "A mere human, how could they possibly..."
However.
When he raised his head and saw the scene at the entrance of the grand hall.
That sneer froze on his face.
On the open ground at the entrance of the grand hall, there were neither corpses nor blood.
What there was, was a simple folding table.
Liu Yuan, Zhao Gang, and two other team members were sitting around the table, holding a deck of cards, their faces covered in white paper strips, playing happily.
"A pair of Ks! Do you want them?"
"Can't beat that!"
"Four twos! Bomb! Hahahaha, I won! Pay up, pay up!"
Liu Yuan excitedly slammed the cards down and reached out to grab the spirit stones on the table.
"..."
The Ninth Prince stood on the steps, struck as if by lightning, his head buzzing.
What the hell is going on?!
This is a ruin filled with crises! This is a test of life and death!
You guys are actually playing Fight the Landlord at the entrance?!
That massive psychological gap almost made the Ninth Prince spit out a mouthful of old blood. He had been struggling for his life to clear the stages, and it turned out they were having a team-building session here?
"Who?!"
Hearing the commotion, Liu Yuan and the others turned their heads alertly.
Seeing it was the Ninth Prince, Liu Yuan was stunned for a moment, then disgustedly put the cards away: "Tch, bad luck. How did this little loach get up here too?"
"You... you guys..."
The Ninth Prince was trembling with rage, his finger pointing at Liu Yuan shaking, "Where is Lin Fan?! Where is that bastard?!"
"Captain?"
Liu Yuan pointed to the tightly closed gate of the grand hall, "He went in a long time ago. About... half an hour ago."
"What?!"
The Ninth Prince's eyes narrowed.
Went in? Half an hour ago?!
How is this possible! That was the Nine-Turn Yellow River Formation, which even he had almost failed! How could Lin Fan be so fast?!
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
The Ninth Prince roared, golden light erupting from his body, and raised his hand to unleash a "Golden Snake Wild Dance," wanting to swat these detestable humans to death.
"Hum—!"
However, before his attack could be launched, the stone tablet at the entrance of the grand hall lit up with a curtain of light, directly dispersing his Origin Qi.
【Important Hall Territory, Private Brawls Prohibited】
"Damn it!"
The Ninth Prince sullenly withdrew his hand and looked at Liu Yuan and the others with venom, "Count yourselves lucky! Once I obtain the inheritance, I will tear you all into pieces when I come out!"
After speaking, he dared not delay any longer, his figure flashed, and he rushed toward the grand hall gate.
"Boom!"
The gate opened, and the Ninth Prince rushed in.
However, what greeted him was not the same mirror image test as Lin Fan's.
The grand hall was empty, with no mirror images, only dense, deathly red glowing kill formation patterns on the ground.
"Huh? No guardian puppets?"
The Ninth Prince was stunned, then immediately overjoyed, "Hahaha! As expected! This is the ruin of my Heavenly Snake Clan ancestors, and this formation recognizes its master! It knows I am of the royal bloodline, so it exempted me from the puppet test!"
"Lin Fan, oh Lin Fan, so what if you entered early?"
"I, the Prince, have the bloodline advantage; in this stage, I will definitely surpass you!"
The Ninth Prince was high-spirited and directly pulled an ancient bronze disk from his bosom.
Heavenly Snake Formation Disk!
This was the clan-suppressing treasure personally bestowed by his father before he left, specifically used to restrain the formations in this ruin.
"Hum!"
The formation disk was sacrificed, hovering above the Ninth Prince's head, casting a sheet of green light. The violent kill formation patterns on the ground quickly dissolved under the illumination of this green light, clearing a path.
"Hahahaha! Heaven helps me!"
The Ninth Prince laughed aloud, stepping on the green light, and rushed toward the depths of the grand hall at high speed.
He had already seen the back of Lin Fan struggling ahead, and the image of himself obtaining the inheritance and stepping that human under his feet.
Eighty-first stage.
Lin Fan stood in the center of the formation, surrounded by six mirror puppets emitting fluctuations of the early Heavenly Origin Realm.
They were no longer the monotonous copies from before; each held an alloy combat saber, their eyes cold, and the aura emanating from their bodies fused perfectly, forming a semi-circular combined attack formation.
"Life-Death Saber Slash!"
Without any nonsense, the six mirror images roared simultaneously.
"Boom!"
Six blade lights soared into the sky, converging in the air into a black blade radiance ten zhang long, carrying a terrifying intent that judged life and death, slashing down directly at Lin Fan!
This strike sealed off all paths of retreat.
This strike was enough to kill any Five-Viscera Yuan Zong in seconds!
"Well come!"
Lin Fan advanced instead of retreating, golden light shining brightly in his eyes.
【Bright Heart Dharma Eye, Full Activation!】
In his field of vision, that seemingly flawless black blade radiance was broken down into countless energy nodes. And at the joints of those six mirror images, a tiny red dot was flickering on each.
Those were the key nodes driving the formation!
"As long as it is a formation, there are flaws."
Lin Fan sneered.
Just as the blade radiance fell, the dragon slaying saber in his hand moved.
Not resisting head-on, but—a point!
"Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!"
Six crisp clashing sounds, so fast it seemed like only one.
Lin Fan's figure wove through the gaps in the blade radiance, the tip of the saber in his hand piercing the knee joints of the six mirror images.
"Crack!"
The formation nodes were broken, and the six mirror images, which had originally moved in perfect unison, had their figures stall, and their originally perfect combined attack formation suffered a fatal pause.